The Royals Were Invited to Lilibet's Los Angeles Christening, But Reportedly Declined the Invitation
...really?


There's a lot happening right now on Planet Royal.
A spokesperson for the Sussexes officially confirmed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's daughter Lilibet, 21 months, was christened in California last week.
"I can confirm that Princess Lilibet Diana was christened on Friday, March 3 by the Archbishop of Los Angeles, the Rev John Taylor," the rep told People.
I want to pause here for a moment for us all to notice that the spokesperson referred to the little girl as Princess Lilibet, which is very significant, and will be ruffling feathers throughout the land as I write this.
While Archie and Lili were automatically entitled to use the titles of "Prince" and "Princess" when Queen Elizabeth passed away and their grandfather became monarch, it was unclear whether King Charles would be actively encouraging them to use these titles, whether he might let them choose whether or not to use them at age 18, or whether he would ban them from using the titles altogether.
To this day, the official line of succession lists the kids as "Master Archie" and "Miss Lilibet," which might indicate that the Sussexes decided to refer to Lili as "Princess" without consulting Charles. (I don't know enough about how this works to confirm whether or not that's the case, FYI.)
Anyway, a source also told People that King Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William and Princess Kate were invited to Lili's christening, but apparently chose to skip the event.
Stay In The Know
Get exclusive access to fashion and beauty trends, hot-off-the-press celebrity news, and more.
This feels like a fairly heartless choice to me, considering the little girl isn't even two years old and it would have been nice for her to know that she was surrounded by family for the milestone. With that said, we also don't know how much notice the royals were given ahead of the event, and if it was just a few weeks, there's no way they could have canceled all their engagements and jetted off to California. Nuance, people.
However, Prince Harry has previously said that he's tried everything to mend his relationship with his family. "It never needed to get to this point. I’ve had conversations, I’ve written letters, I’ve written emails, and everything," the prince told Tom Bradby in January.
He implied that the ball was in their court, but still invited them to his daughter's christening. On their end, the royals invited the Sussexes to the coronation. Let's see if they can use these silver linings to reconcile, but I'm seriously starting to lose hope.
Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.
-
Why Prince William Eliminated Queen Elizabeth's "No Selfies" Rule
The Prince of Wales has shattered royal protocol when it comes to taking pictures with fans.
By Amy Mackelden Published
-
Princess Beatrice Discusses "Sheer Worry" During Second Pregnancy
"The uncertainty leaves you with an overwhelming fear of the unknown."
By Amy Mackelden Published
-
Taylor Swift Was Joined by a "Surprise Guest" on Vacation
An unexpected visitor reportedly crashed the couple's romantic skiing trip.
By Amy Mackelden Published
-
Why Prince William Decided to Eliminate Queen Elizabeth's "No Selfies" Rule Completely
The Prince of Wales has shattered royal protocol when it comes to taking pictures with fans.
By Amy Mackelden Published
-
Meghan Markle Sent a Handwritten Note to a Podcaster Who Said She Was "Scared" for the Royal Before Her Netflix Show Premiered
Mailing a handwritten note to reply to an Instagram comment might be the most Meghan Markle thing of all time.
By Kayleigh Roberts Published
-
Prince Harry’s Ex, Cressida Bonas, Is Launching a Podcast and Princess Eugenie Is Already Lined Up as a Guest
Other famous faces in the podcast's launch announcement video include Kate Winslet, Mary Berry, and Camilla Alves McConaughey.
By Kayleigh Roberts Published
-
Why Gwyneth Paltrow Supports Meghan Markle's Goop-style Reinvention Despite Not Knowing Her Personally
Book her for season 2 of 'With Love, Meghan' right now.
By Lia Beck Published
-
Did Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet Just Make an Adorable Waffle Version of Queen Elizabeth's Face?
The Duchess of Sussex shared a fun St. Patrick's Day video that had fans making queenly connections.
By Kristin Contino Published
-
Meghan Markle Shares the "Uncomfortable" Experience She Had After Moving to Montecito
"Of course, at the beginning, that felt like a lot."
By Amy Mackelden Published
-
7 Times the Royal Family Broke Queen Elizabeth's More Understated "Rule"
These royal women are doing it their way.
By Kristin Contino Published
-
Meghan Markle Just Keeps Getting Busier With Major New Business Announcement
April will bring an exciting new venture for the duchess.
By Kristin Contino Published